


The Worst and Best Week Ever

by GoosebumpsWalkaway



Category: New Girl
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Chaptered, F/M, Fluff and Angst, post s5 finale
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-13
Updated: 2016-07-13
Packaged: 2018-07-23 18:28:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 4,137
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7475214
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoosebumpsWalkaway/pseuds/GoosebumpsWalkaway
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>One week is all Jess has with Nick before he leaves for NOLA. She will enjoy it, Reagan or not.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Day One

**Author's Note:**

> These chapters are short, but I have them written so I'll post them all at once. Hope you like it!

There was a whole week between the time Nick announced that he was leaving with Reagan and when they were set to fly out of town for 3 months.  
Jess was, of course, dreading that day, but decided to savor the time she had left with Nick, Reagan or not. 

The first night after the wedding, though she agreed it was mutual, Jess was still a little upset over Sam leaving her. She knew subconsciously that they wouldn't have worked out, but the break up still hurt, as every break up does. 

She sat down on the couch after a meeting at school with a glass of pink wine. She intended to watch Dirty Dancing, and had just hit play when Nick and Reagan walked in. Jess's stomach clenched when she saw them together, but she did her best to act normal.

"C'mon Jess, again? I thought you said you were okay after the Dr. Sam fiasco." Nick went to the fridge to grab a beer, and offered Reagan one, but she turned him down.

Jess squinted at Nick. "Really Nick? Fiasco?" Nick shrugged and sat down next to her, patting the cushion on his other side for Reagan, who also sat.

About an hour, two more beers and a few pink wines in, Reagan stood up, and said, "I think I'm going to shower and then get in bed, it's been a long day. Nick, would you care to join me?"

"Uh, nah, the movie's just getting good, and I'm wide awake. I'll be in there in a little while."  
Reagan nodded and left the room. 

Jess looked at Nick and said, "Thanks, I kinda don't want to be alone right now." 

Nick just responded, "I know," with a smile.

They both kept watching the movie.


	2. Day Two

Everyone was seated around the table after a shared meal, and Jess stood up to collect their plates. 

Nick sat next to Reagan, Schmidt by Cece, and Winston next to Aly, leaving Jess in her own corner. They were all laughing and joking together like nothing had changed. Like Cece and Schmidt weren't married, like Winston and Aly hadn't told each other I love you, and like Jess was not the only one who didn't have somebody to sit next to. 

They laughed about everything; about Cece's first wedding, about Schmidt's douchebag jar, about Winston and his obsession with his cat. There were so many memories in this loft, with this strange family.

Jess felt a pang of jealousy every time Nick looked at Reagan like he used to look at her when they were dating.  
But every time someone cracked a joke that made Nick laugh, Jess could feel his eyes on her, like he was making sure she was laughing too. 

She wondered if he felt sorry for her, him still thinking she was broken up over Sam. Those looks made her feel even worse; they just made her want to tell Nick how she felt even more, but she knew she couldn't.   
He seemed so happy to be with Reagan, there's no way Jess would mess that up for him. She was not going to be his 'Cooler' this time, though she desperately wanted to. 

She ignored him the best she could. 

Reagan was staring right at him, laughing along with the group.


	3. Day Three

The next night, loft mates, currently including, Reagan and Aly, were considering playing a game of True American. 

Reagan piped up at the suggestion, "You guys have fun playing your stupid game, I've got some work to do. I never really understood the rules anyway. Nick, if you need me, I'll be in your room on my laptop."   
Nick nodded, and Reagan patted his shoulder as she left. 

Jess said, "Okay, down to six, is everybody else in?"

Aly stood. "I'm actually out, too. Got an early morning, right Bishop?" She lovingly looked at Winston. "I think I should head home." Winston stood with her. "I'll walk you out. Don't start without me though!" They both left.

"Alright, everyone else is in, right? Speak now or forever hold your booze." Jess said in a sing-song voice. 

Cece joined in, "Oh, I am so in."   
Schmidt smiled at Cece and said "It'll be our first game of True American as a married couple, isn't that exciting?" and they shared a kiss. 

Nick slapped the table and stood. "So are we gonna do this thing or what? Lets go, c'mon!" He went to the fridge and the liquor cabinet to get the supplies for the game, and soon enough Winston was back and they were ready to play.

Reagan returned to the living room after a while to find Schmidt and Cece huddled under the kitchen table, Winston in the foyer with pillows taped to his shoes, and Nick and Jess both standing on a chair together. 

Nick had his hand resting on Jess's back, and Jess was holding on to Nick's arm to keep them balanced. 

"Reagan!" Nick shouted when she entered the room. "Have you come to join the game? You can still be on Winston's team if you want!" He was smiling and slurring his words, and he wasn't the only one. They were all quite drunk from the blur that is True American. 

"No, I'm just passing through to get a glass of water." Winston did his best to talk her into joining the game, but Reagan assured them all that she still had lots of work to do and returned to Nick's room. 

They made it through that game with Schmidt and Cece only making out twice, Winston almost getting disqualified for trying to pause the game to call Aly, and Nick and Jess getting into one heated argument about who the sexiest president was. 

Overall, it was a pretty successful game. 

None of them could remember who won, though.


	4. Day Four

Jess had a particularly difficult day with her students the next morning. It was summer school time, and this group of kids was the rowdiest Jess had ever dealt with. 

One student decided it would be a good idea to cut off the tip of his finger with scissors, another two she caught making out in the bathroom, and yet another grabbed the pet fish in the classroom and shoved it in his mouth. 

So when Jess made it home to find Nick and Reagan sitting on the couch with his arm around her, she couldn't hold it back anymore. 

She slammed her keys and purse down on the table in the doorway, and didn't even make it to her room before the tears began flowing. She slammed the door to her room, but not a minute later, there was a knock. 

"Hey, Jess? Can I come in?" Nick listened at the door. "...Okay." Jess replied. She knew Nick always had a way of cheering her up. 

He cracked open the door and poked his head in. "What's up, kid? Bad day at work?" Nick stepped all the way in, leaving the door cracked slightly. 

"Yeah, something like that." He sat down next to her, and she told him about the summer school bunch. 

Afterward, Nick put his arm around her shoulders. "I'm sorry you had a rough day, can I make you some tea?" Nick smiled at her. 

"Yeah, that sounds nice. But... not just yet." Jess rested her head on his arm and she closed her eyes. 

He didn't move until she did, and as she changed clothes he went to make good on his promise for tea.

When he brought it to her, he sat down at the end of her bed again as she drank it, and told her about some of the crazy customers he's had at the bar lately which made Jess laugh. 

Reagan heard her laughing from the living room, and peeked through Jess's door to see what was going on. 

She decided not to disturb them.


	5. Day Five

"Dude, you need to get out of the house. All you do is sit around on the couch when Reagan is at work." Winston was eating breakfast before he had to go to work. 

Nick replied with a grunt at that, and didn't move. 

Winston sighed and shook his head as he placed his cereal bowl in the sink. "Alright man, but I'm not gonna be the one to peel you off that couch when you melt to the cushions." He left out the front door. 

Later that day, Schmidt came home for lunch. "Nicholas, have you been sitting in that same place since I left this morning? That's disgusting, at least take a shower or something. Don't you have to work?" 

Nick answered, "Not today. Today is a No Pants Day." 

Schmidt scoffed, and ate his lunch at the kitchen table. He rinsed off his plate and threw an apple a Nick, which hit him in the chest. 

"At least eat something, you gigantic child. I'm leaving, don't strain yourself today." Schmidt left after his sarcastic remark. 

Cece showed up a little later, again bugging Nick to move. "Isn't there something you could be doing? Writing your zombie novel, or drinking or whatever?" 

Another grunt from Nick. "I am working on the novel. haven't you heard of brainstorming?" 

"That might work a little better if the TV wasn't distracting you, dummy." 

Grunt. 

Cece rolled her eyes. "Alright, well I'm off again. Got another class, then work at the bar tonight. Are you going to move today?" After no reply, Cece rolled her eyes again and left the loft.

Jess showed up about an hour later. "School's out for the weekend! What do you want to do tonight, Miller?" Jess walked to the fridge and grabbed two beers. 

She went over and sat down next to Nick and handed him one. "Whatcha thinking, maybe a movie? Where's Reagan?" She asked, not really wanting to know the answer.

"She's at work. I guess I'm down for a movie, but let me shower and put on pants first." Nick finally stood up. 

His couch hole was so pronounced, you could make it into a pool. 

Jess was still sitting on the couch when Reagan got back a little later. As much as she didn't want to, she told Reagan about their plans to go to a movie, but she declined the offer. 

"You guys go, I think I'm gonna go out with some friends I haven't seen in a while." 

"Are you sure?" Jess asked. "I hate to be a third wheel, so if you want to go with Nick I can stay here." Jess offered earnestly. 

"Yeah, totally. Movies aren't really my thing. Just tell Nick that I'm going out with some work friends." With that, Reagan left again. 

Nick appeared minutes later, and Jess told him about Reagan. 

"Okay, cool. Better text her just in case." He pulled out his phone and sent Reagan a message. 

"You ready?" Nick put his arm out for Jess and she grabbed it. 

"Yep, let's go!"


	6. Day Six

"Tell me about you and Jess. What happened there? It's pretty unusual to see exes being such close friends, and roommates, for that matter." Reagan was laying in Nick's bed, propped up on one arm facing him, who was on his back. 

"Are you sure you want to hear about that? It's in the past, we haven't dated for about three years now." Nick replied. 

To be honest, he didn't really want to talk about it. 

"Yeah, I want to hear it. What happened?" 

"Okay, fine." Nick began the story.

 

"Jess moved in, like, six years ago, right? I had just been dumped by Caroline...again, and was still pretty deep in that hole. But Jess moved in, and everything started getting lighter. I didn't think about Caroline so much, because Jess was there to annoy the hell out of me. She was a pretty good distraction, to begin with. 

But then things kinda got weird; Caroline and I got back together for a bit, and we almost moved in together, so Jess and I argued. 

I didn't move in with her. 

Jess was dating these guys that were pretty terrible for her, but I couldn't say anything, and it was none of my business anyway, really. We were just really good friends. 

She was dating guys, and I was dating girls, too. I dated a stripper for a while, but that didn't last. 

One night after a tough game of True American... I kissed her. There's a longer story behind that, but I was just finishing the game, kinda. But she was dating this doctor that she really seemed to like, and I messed it up. He punched me in the throat, actually. 

I thought I had ruined everything. 

I got a new manager at work, and she was really into me, which was cool for a little bit, but then Jess got really jealous. 

I thought we were over, never gonna happen, but then she kissed me that night. It didn't go anywhere, I broke a huge fishtank, and that was it. We argued some more. 

But then...she came with me and Winston and Schmidt to my dad's funeral...and she kinda fixed everything after I broke it all. She was Elvis." 

 

Reagan looked confused at that. 

 

"...Long story. But...she made things better. 

So, I thought I had nothing to lose, so I took her on a date, that wasn't really a date. 

She declared 'Middle School Dance Rules' after that, which I immediately broke. 

We got together a while later and were together, then weren't, then we were, finally. 

We went to Mexico. I got arrested. We argued a lot. Had a lot of really great sex. Argued some more. 

We said I love you at Prince's house...another long story... and things were great. 

Until Jess's sister came to town. She made Jess get all in her head about living together and what a real relationship is. 

Jess decided basically that I was not what she wanted. 

She wanted me to think about our future, and I did but... it wasn't like what she was imagining for us. 

I got scared. So, we called it off. We both missed being just friends, honestly, that's what it boiled down to. 

She's my best friend and things get complicated when you throw sex in the mix."

 

"Wow." Reagan said when Nick finished.

"Yeah, sorry. It's been an interesting six years." Nick smiled. "But I'm with you now, and we're gonna give this a shot, right?"

"Yeah, definitely." Reagan smiled. "Prince's house, huh?"

"Heh, like I said, long story."


	7. Day Seven, part 1

There was a gentle knock on Jess's door on the afternoon that Nick and Reagan were leaving. 

"Hey, Jess, I'm leaving soon and I wanted to say goodbye, are you in here?" Nick said from behind her closed door. 

Jess gave no response. She thought it might be easier to let him leave without saying goodbye. Clean break, like Coach said.

 

A little later, Jess was still bundled up on her bed, she heard some static coming from her Wedding walkie-talkie, and Nick's voice.

"Come in, J-Day, do you copy? Over." This elicited a small giggle from Jess through the tears. She still couldn't bring herself to answer, however. 

"Well, if you can hear me," Nick continued, " Reagan and I are leaving now. We've both said all our goodbyes, almost. Please, can I give you a proper send off? Wait. I mean... Can you give... Nevermind. Can I see you before I leave, please?"

 

Jess buried her face in her pillow and started sobbing again. Why does this hurt so much more than when they broke up?

 

Nick waited a few minutes, and started talking again. 

"Okay Jess. I just wanted to say, I'll miss you, more than any of these clowns." 

She heard Winston and Schmidt yell "hey!" in the background, and Jess giggled again. 

"I mean it, Jess. I'm gonna miss you. 

...Goodbye."

and the walkie-talkie shut off again. 

Jess sat up a minute later when she heard the front door open and shut, and decided she couldn't do it. She couldn't do the "Clean Break," and had to say goodbye in person, it was her last chance to see him. 

She took off in bare feet across her room, across the hall, across the foyer where she heard Cece say "Attagirl" from the couch, and out the front door, praying she would catch him before the elevator did. 

 

She gasped when he turned to her and smiled, still standing in the hallway, and she couldn't help but smile back. 

"Glad you made it" Nick set his bags down and Jess ran to him and wrapped him in a tight hug. 

They hadn't hugged like this since the night they broke up; he could smell her watermelon shampoo and she smelled his soap and a little alcohol on him. They remained in that embrace for several minutes, and Jess tried her best to keep herself from bursting into tears. 

They were still hugging when the elevator dinged, and Reagan stepped out, clearing her throat gently. 

Nick and Jess released each other, but Jess kept her hands on Nick's shoulders, and Nick wiped a tear from Jess's face.

Jess opened her mouth to say something, but she changed her mind and shook her head. She instead looked Nick right in the eyes and said, "Be safe. Please." 

Nick smiled and said, "I will."


	8. Day Seven, part 2

Nick and Reagan pulled up to the airport after an almost silent drive. Nick was about to get out of the car, but Reagan stopped him.

"Wait." She turned to him. "I don't think you should do this."

"W-what do you mean? I thought you wanted me to go with you?" Nick looked surprised and a bit upset.

"I would love for you to go, but I don't think it's the right thing for you to do." She got out of the car and went to grab her suitcase from the trunk. Nick followed, but Reagan stopped him.

"What's going on? I thought you wanted to give this a try? Y'know, 'The Big R'?" He said with air quotes. 

"I just don't think it's the right time, is all."

Reagan closed the trunk and took off towards the airport. 

"Wait, just tell me what's going on here!" Nick walked quickly after her. "I thought things were going great, and all of a sudden you've changed your mind?"

Reagan continued walking through the airport entrance. She flashes her ticket to the man at the counter, but Nick stops her from going on without him.

"Please, just tell me what is happening. Fine, I won't go with you, because obviously I've done something wrong, but please just tell me what I did."

Reagan smiles sadly at him, but casually lifts her luggage onto the conveyor belt and places her heels and phone in the tray. 

She walks backwards through the metal detector still smiling at Nick.

"You know why you shouldn't come with me. It would never last between us."

"Oh yeah? And why is that? Am I not good enough for you?" Nick looks hurt.

"Of course it's not that." She turns and grabs her belongings. She smiles at him one final time. 

 

"It's Jess."

 

She turns and walks away without looking back at him.

Nick stares at her until she disappears in the crowd, open mouthed, as though he's about to say something.

 

Reagan is still smiling when she reaches her gate.

She knows that she did the right thing, even though it hurt.


	9. Day Seven, part 3

Nick sat alone at the airport for a while trying to process what Reagan had said when she left. 

Soon enough, he got a text from Jess that read, 'Hey, you in the air yet? xo' in an exactly Jess fashion. 

Nick decided not to answer her, but that's when he stood to head home. He got in the car and headed to the loft, still in silence, still thinking hard. Even when he made it back to the loft, he didn't leave the car right away. He sat for a few minutes, contemplating. 

He loved Jess. He always had, and had conceded that he always will, even though he knew she didn't love him anymore.  
They had their time, and he was her weird detour before she met the love of her life. 

But if he couldn't make things work with Reagan because of Jess, how was he going to make it work with any woman he dates? 

Nick rubbed his face. He was tired, it was late, and he didn't really want to face his roommates, especially Jess, and have to explain to them what happened. He could tell them that he decided not to go, or that Reagan didn't want him to after all...but he knew the truth. He had screwed things up with her before they even had a chance to work. 

He dragged himself out of the car, grabbed his suitcase, and headed up to the loft. 

He sighed just outside the door and swallowed the lump in his throat. 

What will Jess say? Surely she'll be glad he's not leaving, but will she be disappointed in him for failing again? 

Nick opened the loft door to find a dark, empty living room. Everyone was probably already asleep, which made Nick relieved. He could deal with it all in the morning. 

As he went to open his door, he heard some soft sobbing coming from Jess's room, and he smiled. 

He thought, I should at least tell Jess tonight, right? It'll cheer her up, at least. 

He dropped off his suitcase and went to knock on Jess's door. "Come in," he heard weakly from the other side. Another sigh, and he opened her door to find her curled up in her blanket, facing away from the door. 

He said nothing and sat down on the end of her bed, and she looked up. "Hey, kid." he said. 

Jess's eyes lit up like Christmas and wrapped him in such a tight hug that Nick had trouble breathing, but he just smiled. 

"I'm so glad your back, but what happened to Reagan?" Jess still had her arms wrapped around his neck. 

"It...just didn't work out. She thought we wouldn't have made it, so she left me here." Jess looked genuinely sad for Nick. 

"I'm so sorry, why did she think that? Can't she see how amazing you are?" 

At that, Nick looked Jess right in the eye, and felt like now was the time to take a leap of faith. He couldn't go on like this. Either he could have her, or he couldn't, and he needed to know one way or the other. 

 

So he leapt.

 

"It was you, Jess. Apparently she could see that I'm still crazy in love with you, and wanted me to go after you."

Jess got wide-eyed, and Nick looked away. What was only a few seconds felt to him like a lifetime; his heart was pounding so hard that he was sure she could hear it. 

 

Little did he know, hers was pounding just as hard.

 

"Nick. Look at me." Jess put her hands on his face. Nick did as she said and looked in her eyes. She was smiling so big she seemed to be glowing. 

He smiled at her too. She told him,"I love you so much. You're my best friend, and you really are incredible. I think I never stopped loving you, I just had to find my way back and figure out what I really wanted-"

Nick interrupted her by kissing her for every time that he wanted to but couldn't in the past few years. He grabbed at her neck, her back, he ran his hand down her thigh. He wanted to touch every inch of her, and she wanted him to. 

Neither of them could believe it; they both felt like they were in a dream.

The kissing lead to more, of course. They had to make up for lots of lost time. He finally had the opportunity to touch every part of her again, and he most certainly did. 

 

When they woke up the next morning, there was still a lot of explaining to do, but Nick didn't dread it any more. Jess was by his side again, and he was floating. 

It seemed like every one of their roommates knew this would happen. 

Cece and Winston both knew Jess still loved Nick, and Schmidt claimed he knew about Nick's feelings. Even when Aly showed up, she said she could see it all over both of their faces the entire time. 

But it didn't matter. 

Nick and Jess both finally had exactly what they wanted. 

 

They were never going to let each other go again.

**Author's Note:**

> Please leave comments if you want! I love to improve my writing, so please let me know if there's something you like or don't like! Also, tell me if there's anything that sounds OOC, I'm still working on that. Thanks! Please enjoy!


End file.
